Who We Are
The NextGen Education Fund’s mission is to educate and empower young Americans to strengthen our democracy.
At NextGen we support young people as they decide who gets elected, what’s on the agenda, and how we solve the greatest challenges of our time.
NextGen doesn’t stand for any one party or politician. We stand for the largest and most diverse generation in American history. We stand together for a future that honors their potential and thrives on their success.
NextGen welcomes young people into our democratic process, and ensures they have the tools to influence that process. Here’s how we do it:
What We Do
Our staff, volunteers and fellows work in states across the country, bringing together broad experience in nonprofit management, voter engagement and mobilization, leadership development and fundraising.
Year-round civic engagement
The data is clear: young voters are essential to determining the long-term strength of our democracy and they are more likely to vote when engaged through year-round programs that involve and inform them on the issues that matter most to them — economic and racial justice, and climate change. NextGen reaches young voters through:
- Voter education;
- Voter registration; and
- Voter mobilization;
NextGen organizes communities of young Americans to understand and impact what happens in their cities, their capitals and all the way to the White House.
Communications
NextGen shifts the narrative around young voters and the issues that matter to their lives by:
- Organizing the young-voter communities online through large-scale digital strategies and on the ground in their neighborhoods and on campus;
- Creating a culture of engagement by convening artists and performers to tell the untold stories and struggles of the community; and
- Amplifying the voices of young voters in new and traditional media at the local, state and national level.
NextGen pushes young voters and the challenges they face to the forefront of the political dialogue. By changing the participants, we change the debate, change the agenda and make real, lasting change.
Leadership Development and Capacity Building
Young people are regularly excluded from the decision-making processes that most impact their lives. But more than ever, our country needs their diverse voices and experiences leading the way to change. NextGen is building the capacity and leadership of young people to be next generation of advocates, organizers and policymakers through:
- Coalition and capacity building: We work with youth civic engagement partners in key states to help build local leadership and reach to scale their work and transform hundreds of thousands of young people into dedicated civic participants and leaders.
- Leadership Training: NextGen knows that our democracy works best when everyone gets a seat at the table. We’re building the capacity of young leaders to drive change in their communities and mobilize others to action.
Senior Leadership
Cristina Tzintzún Ramirez
Cristina has spent the last two decades founding and leading some of the country’s most creative and successful social justice organizations, addressing issues ranging from income inequality and workers’ rights to climate change and voting rights. In 2020, she was a progressive U.S. Senate candidate in Texas, and brings deep experience mobilizing young people of diverse backgrounds to engage and lead in the democratic process. She lives in Austin, Texas.
Keith Yetter
Keith manages our administrative teams, including our finance, legal, HR, and operations departments. Before joining NextGen, he was an attorney at a large national law firm. He lives in San Francisco.
Kate Lyon
Kate manages NextGen’s day-to-day operations and key strategic initiatives to ensure we accomplish our goals, plan for the future, and meet our deadlines. Prior to joining NextGen, Kate was on the campaign trail for more than a decade and most recently served as a strategist with one of the country’s leading political communications firms. She also worked on the Hill and in government relations for nonprofits focused on reproductive rights. Kate is a certified copyeditor and licensed attorney. She lives in Washington, DC.
Lillie Catlin
Lillie manages our program team strategy and campaigns, including our political, distributed organizing, data, and digital departments. Before joining NextGen, she ran organizing programs for multiple statewide and national candidate campaigns and at the ACLU. She is based in Washington, DC.
Risi Vera
Risi has been with NextGen since 2013 and currently oversees the finance and accounting operations of the organization, ensuring accuracy and integrity of internal and external reporting. Before joining NextGen, Risi worked for several fortune 500 companies. She lives in Los Altos, California.
Victoria Yang Souza
Victoria leads NextGen’s fundraising efforts, and previously consulted for various organizations including the Obama Foundation. She led fundraising for Senator John Kerry’s (D-MA) re-election campaign in 2008, and oversaw the fundraising operation at the Democratic National Committee during the 2004 Presidential campaign. She lives in Boston.
Harry Johnson, II
Harry is a national public and political affairs executive, serial entrepreneur, fundraiser, and community builder. A North Carolina native, Harry formerly held a number of senior political roles with multiple gubernatorial campaigns and campaigns for U.S. Congress and U.S. Senate. He also led federal government affairs for Dream Corps, Green For All. Harry is based in Washington, DC.
Antonio Arellano
Antonio serves as the Vice President of Communications at NextGen America where he oversees the implementation of a national strategy to increase the progressive power of young Americans in politics. As a multimedia and communications expert, his culturally competent campaigns have contributed to the empowerment and mobilization of youth-led movements at the state and national levels. Antonio is based in Texas.